1. Patañjali is the compiler of the Yoga Sutras, an important collection of aphorisms on yoga practice.
Sūtra (Sanskrit sū́tra), literally means a rope or thread that holds things together, and more metaphorically refers to an aphorism (or line, rule, formula), or a collection of such aphorisms in the form of a manual.
2. Swami Satyananda Saraswati Four Chapters On Freedom Commentary On The Yoga Sutras Of Patanjali ISBN : 81-85787-18-2
3. D. Ebert. Physiologische Aspekte des Yoga. 1986 Stuttgart: Thieme
4. In Samkhya philosophy, one of the six schools of Hindu philosophy, rajas (Sanskrit rajas, or rajoguna) is the quality (guna) of activity. If a person or thing tends to be extremely active, excitable, or passionate, that person or thing is said to have a preponderance of rajas. It is contrasted with the quality of tamas, which is the quality of inactivity, darkness, and laziness, and with sattva, which is the quality of purity, clarity, and healthy calmness.
5. Yama (“discipline”) — the first “limb” (anga) of Patanjali’s eightfold path, comprising moral precepts that have universal validity (such as nonharming and truthfulness); also the name of the Hindu deity of death
Niyama (“[self-]restraint”) — the second limb of Patanjali’s eightfold path, which consists of purity (shauca), contentment (samtosha), austerity (tapas), study (svâdhyâya), and dedication to the Lord (îshvara-pranidhâna)
6. Prânâyâma (from prâna and âyâma, “life/breath extension”) — breath control, the fourth limb (anga) of Patanjali’s eigthfold path, consisting of conscious inhalation (pûraka), retention (kumbhaka), and exhalation (recaka); at an advanced state, breath retention occurs spontaneously for longer periods of time.
7. Wu Wei: in Taoist thought, «actionless action;» related to the concept of de as efficient power, Wu Wei refers to action that is in accordance with the Dao («Way»), which is therefore seen as ultimately more productive than energy-depleting friction that pushes too hard, i.e., against the Dao, for its goal.
8. In some people suffering from severe neurosis, the body and its sensations can become alienated from each other and some important signals from the body may be missed by the consciousness, while “ghost” ones (not relating to actual contact of the body with environment) may actually dominate the attention.
9. Vipassana: This is a form of meditation known as insight meditation, and is considered key to enlightenment by Theravada Buddhists.
10. Representational systems (also known as sensory modalities and abbreviated to VAKOG or known as the 4-tuple) is a Neuro-linguistic programming model that examines how the human mind processes information. It states that for practical purposes, information is (or can be treated as if) processed through the senses. Thus people say one talks to oneself (the auditory sense) even if no words are emitted, one makes pictures in one’s head when thinking or dreaming (the visual sense), and one considers feelings in the body and emotions (known as the kinesthetic sense).
11. Yoga Sutras of Patanjali (1,2) defines yoga as following: yogas chitta vritti nirodhah — Yoga is the cessation of the thought-waves of the mind. (To block the patterns of consciousness is yoga.) Here and later CVN means blocking conventional thinking process.
12. Sadhaka (Sanskrit) is a practitioner of a particular sadhana (practice). The term is often synonymous with yogi
13. Phosphene — a luminous impression due to excitation of the retina.
14. Ekagrata -Concentration of mind on one object or thought
15. Bandha: Internal lock. There are several types, the most common ones are mula bandha (root lock), uddiyana bandha (abdominal lock) and jalandhara bandha (chin lock).
16. Hatha yoga – asanas and pranayama.
17. Yoga Nidra is a deep relaxation technique also called “yogic sleep” in which mind and body is at complete rest but with complete awareness.
18. Vympel is the Russian elite military unit.
19. Russians prefer to spell things out for you.
20. Stabilogram is the test measuring the severity of balance disorders resulting from the lack of adequate muscle response due to a deficiency of sensory inputs or damage in the central nervous system.
21. In Hindu philosophy, sattva (Sanskrit sattva «purity», literally «existence, reality»; adjectival sāttvika «pure», anglicised sattvic) is the highest of the three gunas in Samkhya, sāttvika «pure», rājasika «dim», and tāmasika «dark».
A person or creature can be called sāttvika if the creature has predominantly sāttvika tendencies.
A sāttvika individual always works for the welfare of the world. He is always hardworking, alert and lives life moderately. He leads a chaste life. He eats moderately. He speaks the truth and is bold. He never uses vulgar or insulting language. He does not feel jealous nor is he affected by greed and selfishness. He does not cheat or mislead anyone. He does not even allow any evil tendencies to enter his mind. He has good memory and concentration. He also has keen interest in improving his spiritual knowledge, and spends time worshiping god or meditating. In the extreme state he may even perform penance or uninterrupted meditation. A satvic individual can be recognized if his mind, speech and actions synchronize. Manasa, vacha, karmana are the three Sanskrit words used to describe such a state.
22. Siddhi (Sanskrit: siddhiḥ) is a Sanskrit word that literally means «perfection», «accomplishment», «attainment», or «success». It is also used as a term for spiritual power (or psychic ability). The term is used in that sense in Hinduism and Tantric Buddhism. These spiritual powers supposedly vary from relatively simple forms of clairvoyance to being able to levitate, to be present at various different places simultaneously, to become as small as an atom, to materialize objects, to have access to memories from past lives, and more.
23. Pratyâhâra (“withdrawal”) — sensory inhibition, the fifth limb (anga) of Patanjali’s eightfold path
Dhâranâ (“holding”) — concentration, the sixth limb (anga) of Patanjali’s eight-limbed Yoga .
Dhyâna (“ideating”) — meditation, the seventh limb (anga) of Patanjali’s eight-limbed Yoga
24. Bahiranga Yoga (the first four “limbs” (anga) of Patanjali’s eightfold path) consists of:
Yama — Morals
Niyama — Ethics
Asana — Posture
Pranayama — Breath Control
Antaranga Yoga (the next four “limbs” of Patanjali’s eightfold path) consists of:
Pratyahara — Control of the senses
Dharana — Concentration
Dhyana — Meditation
Samadhi – Enlightenment
24. Samtosha is Contentment; one of the five attributes of niyama (self-restraint)